Principal Investigators: Abrielle Lamphere, Clinical Assistant Professor, Allied Dental Education, Indiana University Fort Wayne (IUFW)
Project Title: Impact of Team-Based Testing on Intra-Collaborative Skills among Undergraduate Dental Hygiene Students
Funding Level: $5000
Abstract: With the growing complexity of social determinants of health and access to healthcare, significant emphasis has been put on collaborative care. Team-based care acknowledges that multiple professionals with indispensable knowledge must work with one another to drive optimal care outcomes. For effective collaboration, professionals must maintain mutual respect, understand one’s own professional role, communicate in a responsive manner, and apply principles of team dynamics. Therefore, preparing undergraduate dental hygiene students to collaborate in practice requires a focus on the process of working in teams. Collaborative testing is an alternative assessment strategy, in which two or more learners work together on summative examinations. Collaborative testing affords the students an opportunity to discuss questions and formulate evidence-based answers. Recent studies have found that team-based testing leads to increased test scores, long-term content retention, and critical thinking skills1,2; however, further research is needed to examine if collaborative testing can increase students’ team-working skills, including all four core collaborative competencies. This study will utilize a quasi-experimental cross-over design in which individual students will serve as both control and treatment. A convenience sample of first-year dental hygiene students at Indiana University Fort Wayne will be utilized for this study. There are twenty-four total students; however, participation in collaborative assessment is voluntary and there will be no consequences for non-participation. Results gained through this research will investigate team-based testing as a mechanism to improve intra-professional collaboration among dental professionals. Additionally, results may serve as a preliminary study for team-based testing for inter-professional education.
